Counseling Psychology Commons^™

Racial/Ethnic Matching Of Clients And Therapists In Mental Health Services: A Meta-Analytic Review Of Preferences, Perceptions, And Outcomes, Timothy B. Smith, Raquel R. Cabral

Faculty Publications

The effects of matching clients with therapists of the same race/ethnicity have been explored using a variety of approaches across several decades. We conducted a meta-analysis of three variables frequently used in research on racial/ethnic matching: Clients' preferences for a therapist of their own race/ethnicity, clients' perceptions of therapists, and therapeutic outcomes. Across 52 studies of preferences, the average effect size was d = .63, indicating a moderately strong preference for a therapist of one's own race/ethnicity. Across 81 studies of individuals' perceptions of therapists, the average effect size was d = .32, indicating a tendency to perceive therapists of …

Culture, Timothy B. Smith, Melanie Domenech Rodríguez, Guillermo Bernal

Faculty Publications

This article summarizes the definitions, means, and research of adapting psychotherapy to clients’ cultural backgrounds. We begin by reviewing the prevailing definitions of cultural adaptation and providing a clinical example. We present an original meta-analysis of 65 experimental and quasiexperimental studies involving 8,620 participants. The omnibus effect size of d 5 .46 indicates that treatments specifically adapted for clients of color were moderately more effective with that clientele than traditional treatments. The most effective treatments tended to be those with greater numbers of cultural adaptations. Mental health services targeted to a specific cultural group were several times more effective than …

Examining The Persuasive Effect Of Metaphor Use In Psychotherapy : An Experimental Test Of Contributing Factors, Walter A. Kendall

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Research suggests that metaphors can facilitate attitude change in psychotherapy. Based on social influence theory (Strong, 1968) and the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM; Petty & Cacioppo, 1986) of persuasion, this analogue study tested the impact of metaphor use in the context of advice as a therapeutic intervention. In an experimental design, 138 adult participants were randomly assigned to observe a brief videotaped vignette in which a therapist's advice to a client either did or did not include a novel metaphor. After observing the video, participants completed a measure of therapist credibility, the Counselor Rating Form-Short Version (CRF-S; Corrigan & Schmidt, …

Experiences Of Christian Clients In Secular Psychotherapy : A Qualitative Investigation, Carrie Lynn Cragun

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

According to several authors, many Christians are skeptical of psychology and fear that their religious beliefs will be misunderstood, unappreciated, ridiculed, or eroded in secular therapy (King, 1978). The purpose of the present discovery-oriented study was to understand Christian clients' phenomenological experiences in secular therapy.

Co-Creating Meaningful Structures Within Long-Term Psychotherapy Group Culture, Robin G. Gayle

Collected Faculty Scholarship

Meaningful group structures are co-created within the long-term outpatient psychotherapy group through a hermeneutical interaction between structure and immediate experience of structure by individuals embedded in personal and collective contexts. Co-created meanings expand original group and self understandings and further evolve structures that are stable yet do not exist independently of the narratives and affects of the members who interact with them. Group structures do not reduce, expand, or dissolve but change in connection to the experiences and meaning attributions within the group. This intersubjective process mediates the emphasis within group theory upon leader responsibility for culture building that risks …

Value Conflicts In Psychotherapy: Psychology Graduates' Perspectives, Shannon Vincent Wilde

Theses and Dissertations

Although psychotherapy has been viewed historically as value-neutral, developments over the last half-century have led to the generally accepted position that values are inescapable in therapy. However, many questions remain as to how values should be managed in psychotherapy in order to protect client autonomy. These issues are of particular concern to training programs, which bear the responsibility of instructing new psychologists in ethical values management and of helping trainees manage personal values when those values are in conflict with those of their clients or with the values of the field in general. One aspect that has not previously been …

Ciis Today, Fall 2008 Issue, Ciis

CIIS Today

This volume is the Fall 2008 issue of CIIS Today, the Magazine of the California Institute of Integral Studies.

Outcomes Of Religious And Spiritual Adaptations To Psychotherapy: A Meta-Analytic Review, Timothy B. Smith, Jeremy Bartz, P. Scott Richards

Faculty Publications

The use of spiritually oriented psychotherapies has increased dramatically during the past decade. This article reports a meta-analysis of 31 outcome studies of spiritual therapies conducted from 1984 to 2005 with clients suffering from a variety of psychological problems. Across the 31 studies, the random-effects weighted average effect size was 0.56. This finding provides some empirical evidence that spiritually oriented psychotherapy approaches may be beneficial to individuals with certain psychological problems (e.g., depression, anxiety, stress, eating disorders). Recommendations for future research in this domain are offered.

Spiritual Interventions In Psychotherapy: Evaluations By Highly Religious Clients, Jennifer S. Martinez, Timothy B. Smith, Sally H. Barlow

Faculty Publications

Spiritual and religious interventions in psychotherapy have increasingly received research attention, particularly with highly religious clients. This study examined client opinions about and experiences with religious interventions in psychotherapy. A sample of 152 clients at a counseling center of a university sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) completed a survey with ratings of specific religious interventions with regards to appropriateness, helpfulness, and prevalence. Out-of-session religious interventions were considered more appropriate by clients than in-session religious interventions, but in-session interventions were rated as more helpful. Specific interventions considered both appropriate and helpful by the LDS participants …

Culturally Adapted Mental Health Treatments: A Meta-Analysis, Derek Griner

Theses and Dissertations

In recent years psychologists have increased awareness and concern regarding the quality of mental health services provided to people of color. For several reasons clients of color often find traditional mental health services foreign or unhelpful. To help diminish obstacles faced by clients of color, several authors have advocated traditional mental health treatments be modified to better match clients' cultural contexts. Researchers have also begun investigating outcomes associated with culturally modified mental health treatments, often contrasting them with traditional mental health services. Recently numerous studies containing empirical data have been published. To date there has been no attempt to review …

Effekte Pharmakologischer Und Psychotherapeutischer Interventionen Auf Depressionen Bei Kindern Und Jugendlichen. [Effects Of Pharmaco- And Psychotherapeutic Interventions Of Depression In Children And Adolescents]., Patrick Pössel, Martin Hautzinger

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Entgegen früheren Überzeugungen besteht heute Konsens und Evidenz dahingehend, dass Depressionen eine bedeutsame Problematik bei Jugendlichen darstellen. Aus diesem Grund stellt sich die Frage nach effektiven Therapieangeboten für depressive Kinder und Jugendliche. Deshalb werden in der vorliegenden Übersichtsarbeit 24 Originalstudien (Kriterium: kontrollierte, randomisierte Interventionsstudien) zu pharmakologischen, 11 Studien zu psychotherapeutischen Interventionen und zwei Studien zur Kombinationsbehandlung dargestellt. Für etwa die Hälfte der Behandlungmethoden (pharmakologische Methoden 3/8; psychotherapeutische Methoden: 2/5) liegen keine randomisierten Kontrollgruppenstudien vor. Weiterhin liegen nur für einige SSRIs (Fluoxetin, Citalopram, Sertralin) ausschließlich positive Daten bezüglich der Besserung depressiver Symptomatik vor. Weiterhin zeigen sich nur für Fluoxetin keine Hinweise, …

Effect Of Comorbid Psychiatric Disorders On Measures Of Group Cohesion In Substance Abusers, Sharon Bradford Robbins

Doctoral Dissertations

Substance dependence and treatment have been the focus of research for a number of years. Recently more attention has been directed toward identifying the most appropriate treatments for people with more complicated substance disorders, those with substance dependence and mental illness. The current study examined three aspects of group cohesion, a necessary condition for effective outcomes, in 64 substance abusers with a comorbid mental illness. The rated aspects of group cohesion included overall group climate, individual group members' self-worth, and each member's perception of the relationship with the group leader. Groups were divided according to profiles based on results from …

Self -Esteem And Sense Of Entitlement In Violent And Nonviolent Criminal Behavior, Susan Frank

Doctoral Dissertations

There are two conflicting theories concerning self-esteem in violent and nonviolent criminal behavior. One theory proposes that low self-esteem is more influential than high self-esteem in an individual's decision to participate in criminal behavior, whereas the other theory proposes the opposite. Limited research is available concerning the role that sense of entitlement has in criminal behavior, beyond its previously explored role in rape. The first purpose of this study was to clarify the role of self-esteem in criminal behavior by having individuals currently incarcerated for both violent and nonviolent crimes complete the Self-Esteem Rating Scale. Using the scores obtained on …

Closet Woman: A Study Of Societal Changes, The Infantalized Woman And The Ways In Which Psychotherapy Can Effect Change, Alice Beck Simmons

Theses

This 1978 Master’s thesis by Alice Beck Simmons investigates the psychological phenomenon of the "infantilized woman" within the context of middle-class American society. The study posits that traditional cultural attitudes toward marriage, family, and sexuality systematically repress female potential, resulting in women who mature physically but remain emotionally dependent and child-like. The author defines "infantilization" as a condition characterized by low self-esteem, a lack of personal identity, and an inability to function or make decisions without relying on another person.

The paper traces the origins of this condition through developmental stages, arguing that parental reinforcement of dependency and the repression …

Therapeutic Conditions And Helpee Outcomes As Perceived By Helpees Of Trainee And Lay Helping Relationships, Penelope Holmes

All Master's Theses

The purpose of this study was to examine the differences that occur between lay and trainee helpers as perceived by their helpees. A significant positive relationship between helpee perception of outcome and therapeutic conditions was hypothesized. A questionnaire was administered to 100 individuals: half had received help from lay persons and half were clients of counseling trainees. A significant interaction between outcome and conditions occurred and six comparisons between lay and trainees were significant. Although there was a trend in the expected direction, the hypothesis was not supported.

Perceived Therapeutic Conditions And Helpee Outcome Among College Students In Nonprofessional And Professional Helping Relationships, Mickey Erdell

All Master's Theses

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between behavior change and therapeutic conditions as defined by Carkhuff ((1969b). It was hypothesized there would be a significant positive relationship between helpee outcomes and the therapeutic conditions perceived by the individuals receiving aid from both professional and nonprofessional helpers. A questionnaire administered within the context of a personal interview was used to record perceptions. The hypothesis was not supported, however some variables were in the predicted direction.